Republicans introduce bill to protect parents’ rights

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jan 28, 2025 / 16:45 pm (CNA).

Republican members of Congress have introduced a bill to protect parental rights “to direct the upbringing, education, and health care of their children.” 

Introduced by U.S. Sens. Tim Scott, R-South Carolina; James Lankford, R-Oklahoma; and Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-North Carolina, the Families’ Rights and Responsibilities Act seeks to prevent government intervention in parental decisions.

“Parents have a fundamental right to control the upbringing of their child, whether it’s in the classroom or at home,” Scott stated in a press release after the bill was introduced last Thursday. 

“Yet, far too often,” he continued, “parents are being pushed out of their child’s lives, and kids are paying the price. I will always fight to put parents back in the driver’s seat and ensure they remain the lead decision-maker in their child’s life.”

If enacted, the bill would “affirm that parents have the fundamental right to direct the upbringing, education, and health care of their children,” block the federal government from interfering substantially with this “right,” and allow parents to seek legal action for violations of the bill in legal or administrative proceedings at both state and federal levels. 

The bill makes an exception for instances where a parental action or decision “would result in physical injury to the child or that would end life.”

“Parents deserve to raise their children without the looming threat of government infringement,” Foxx said in the release. “The Families Rights and Responsibilities Act will shield parental rights while instituting a necessary, fundamental check against the government whenever it decides to enforce policies that fail to extend due deference to parental decision-making.”

The release also notes that the bill would allow parents to seek legal recourse if schools fail to inform them of their child’s “social transition” to another gender, as the Biden administration’s proposed Title IX regulations would have allowed.

Biden’s Title IX reinterpretation was blocked by a federal court in Kentucky earlier this month.

Had the rule been upheld, it would have expanded Title IX “sex” discrimination protections to include a ban on “gender identity” discrimination, even though the phrase “gender identity” does not appear anywhere in the 1972 law.

The bill is co-sponsored by Senate Republican Whip John Barrasso, R-Wyoming; Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota; as well as Reps. Randy Weber, R-Texas; John Rose, R-Tennessee; Mary Miller, R-Illinois; Gus Bilirakis, R-Florida; Clay Higgins, R-Louisiana; Brett Guthrie, R-Kentucky; Brad Finstad, R-Minnesota; Barry Loudermilk, R-Georgia; Rich McCormick, R-Georgia; and Mike Haridopolos, R-Florida.